I Will Be Here
by SpringHiller09
Summary: Someone to Save You SEQUEL! Bella and Carlisle have overcome the bumps of the early part of their relationship. But, when reality really begins to sink in, are they as strong as they thought they were? ...Just because I loved this story so much and missed writing it!
1. Stand By Your Side

**Chapter One: Stand By Your Side**

* * *

**Carlisle's POV**

"Micah Alexander!" I heard Bella yell as I walked into the house. "You do NOT throw blocks at your sister!" I sighed as I placed my keys in the small bowl at the door and walked into the living room. Micah had turned two a little over a month ago and things had been pretty bad. Out of my four kids, he has been the worst going through the terrible two's. He was always hitting, and throwing things and the only world he seemed to know was, no.

"It's okay, mommy." I heard Gabby whisper. Gabby had been a real sport through everything Micah had been going through, especially since she was the one who was always getting hit.

"No, it isn't, Gabby." I said as I walked inside. "He has to learn that throwing things at people is not okay. Especially hard blocks."

"NO!" Micah squealed. I sighed as I picked Gabby up and took her to the bathroom. She had a small bump on her forehead from where Micah had thrown the block. I wet a washcloth with cold water and pressed it to the bump.

"Daddy, I'm okay." She wined, trying to push me away. "It was only a block."

"I just don't want it to swell up anymore." I told her. Gabby had grown up a lot in the last two years. She was already like her mother, eight years old and a straight A student. All she seemed to do was read, and listen to music with Bella's iPod. Even though Micah was a disaster right now, she never got angry with him and never tried to hit him back.

"There." She sighed as I took the washcloth off her head. "All better."

"Do you want some Tylenol?" I asked as we made our way out of the bathroom.

"Daddy, it was only a block." She told me again. "Now let's go downstairs. Mommy was making cookies."

"I think those are for after dinner."

"They are, but you can have one now." Bella said, coming out of the kitchen. "Thanks for being so calm, kiddo."

"It was only a dumb block!" She huffed as I hoisted her up onto the chair at the kitchen island. While she was chomping down on the cookie, I pulled Bella aside and pulled her body close to mine.

"Hi." I smiled, kissing her gently on the lips.

"Hi to you." She laughed as I hugged her tightly. With Micah's attitude, we rarely had time together anymore, and when we eventually got it when they went to bed, we were both too tired to do anything. Plus, we felt bad asking anyone to watch the two of them right now, and probably wouldn't until we got Micah's attitude adjusted.

"Hello!" Tanya's voice rang through the house. I gave Bella one last kiss before letting go and going to meet them in the foyer.

"Hey!" I called, walking over and hugging Tanya. They'd been gone for two weeks in Hawaii for their anniversary and brought the kids along with them.

"Micah!" Hannah called as Edward carried her inside. "Micah!"

"Micah's in timeout, sweetie." I told her, taking her from Edward's grip. "Sorry."

"What'd he do now?" Edward asked as Gabby and Alexa rushed upstairs.

"Threw a block at his sister's head." I sighed as we walked into the kitchen.

"Hi!" Bella practically sang as she hugged Edward and Tanya. "How was Hawaii?"

"Amazing." Tanya sighed, sitting down. "Blue water. White sand. Ninety degrees everyday."

"Okay, okay. I get it." She laughed. "It was perfect."

"Basically." Edward joked. "You two should really take a trip there."

"We'd love to." I said. "But, it'd be too hard. Especially now with Micah. We can barely take him out to eat let alone on a vacation."

"We'd watch him." Tanya offered.

"Thanks, but we couldn't do that to you guys." Bella laughed. "He's a handful, and you already have your own two year old to take care of."

"He's my little brother, Bella." Edward pointed out. "I'm sure we could handle him."

"What about Gabby?" I asked. "She's been really good about him lately, but I know she could use a break too."

"Ask Alice to take her." Tanya suggested. "She loves her sister, and her and Greyson are best friends."

"You know, they have a point." I said, turning to Bella.

"When was the last time you guys went anywhere...just the two of you?" Edward asked. "Your honeymoon? I mean, you had Gabby right away and then just as she was getting old enough, you had Micah. Take the offer and go on a vacation. Rekindle your...flame or whatever."

"It would be nice to just lay on the beach." Bella mused. "And, it has been a long time since we even went out to eat just the two of us."

"Let's do it, Bells." I said, grabbing her hand. She smiled at me and I knew we were going to Hawaii together. Just the two of us. "I'll call Alice tonight." The night passed by without many temper tantrums from either two year old and Bella and I were grateful. I assumed it was the fact that Hannah was there with him that kept him on his good behavior because the minute they left, he hit me square in the nose.

Bed time was a nightmare. As usual. He splashed in the tub, soaking the bathroom. Kicked us as we tried drying him. And continued to climb out of his crib. It took us six times to get him to stay in his bed, and more importantly, his room. Thankfully, Gabby was able to shower and dress for bed without any problems, and tucking her in was easy.

"Daddy?" She asked after Bella had read her a story and said goodnight.

"What it is, darling?"

"Does Micah not like me anymore?" She asked and I saw the hurt in her eyes. "Because, he's always hitting me. And, there's this boy in my class who kits Kimmy because he doesn't like her. I want my brother to like me."

"Oh, Gabriella, he likes you." I sighed as she sat up and curled into my side. "He loves you. It's just, two is a very tricky age to be."

"Why?"

"Because, they're not babies anymore and can do more for themselves." I explained. "They like testing their boundries."

"Did I do that?"

"Yes." I answered. "You weren't as violent as Micah is, but you had many temper tantrums."

"So...he won't always be like this?"

"I hope not." I sighed, causing her to smile at me. "He'll be back to normal soon, sweetie. Just be patient."

"Okay." She agreed. "Daddy?"

"Yes?"

"I love you."

"I love you more." I whispered, as she laid back down. I pulled the covers over her again and kissed her before walking out of the room. I found Bella in the living room with a wet washcloth on her forehead. I went into the kitchen and grabbed the rest of the cookies and brought them out for her.

"Thanks." She sighed, sitting up and curling into my side. "I can't wait to get out of her."

"Me either."

"I love Micah." She said. "He's my son but, oh my gosh, if I have to yell at him for hitting Gabby one more time...I'm going to lose it!"

"I really don't know where this is coming form." I sighed. "None of my kids have been this bad. Not even Edward, who's a boy so that'd be my only logical excuse."

"Is it us?"

"No. If it were, Gabby would have been a mess too."

* * *

"Now, you have all the numbers." Bella said as she went over how to take care of Gabby again the day before we were leaving for Hawaii. "And, she has her books and her Lamby."

"Bells?" Alice asked. "I've taken care of her before."

"I know, but not for a week."

"No, but I do have my own daughter who was eight at one point." She laughed. "Go and have fun!"

"She's right, babe." I said as I came back downstairs with Jasper after getting Greyson and Gabby situated. "Come on, they're going to be fine. All of them."

"It's just hard." She whispered. "I haven't left them since they were born."

"So this is a good thing, not a bad thing." I pointed out. "Now, say goodbye to Alice and Jasper and let's go."

After all the goodbye's were done, we finally headed home after a long day. Unlike every other day, Micah was begging for us to stay and hold him and we left Edward's house with him screaming his lungs off. I felt terrible for leaving him with Edward, but this vacation was about Bella and I and we deserved it.

When we got home, Bella went right back to packing, and I just sat in one of the chairs in our room, watching her. She was an organized person and made a list for everything, even when we only took the kids to Alice's for an overnight sleepover. I smiled as she raced around the room, trying to find all the last minute things or things she didn't have time to pack before.

"Where's your swim trunks?" She asked after she'd opened every drawer.

"I don't know." I answered sarcastically before she came over and slapped me. "You have to find them."

"Carlisle, we don't have time for this." She sighed. "We gotta get packed, eat, and then go to sleep since we have to be up at four in the morning."

"They won't be hard to find." I laughed, but she was annoyed and didn't find this amusing. She ended up just walking away to find something else, and I gave up and handed them to her. We decided to just order a pizza and watch reruns of _Friends_ and _Who's Line is it Anyway_ until we called it a night.

"Carlisle?" I heard Bella's voice whisper as she pushed the hair out of my face. "Sweetie. Wake up."

"Do I have to?" I groaned.

"If you wanna go to Hawaii...yes. You do." She said, and I immediately perked up. I turned towards her and smiled, giving her a closed mouth kiss. I slowly got out of bed, and got dressed in a pair of basketball shorts and a t-shirt. I smiled at Bella, in khaki shorts a pink beater, and was amazed that she could actually get ready and look nice no matter how tired she was.

"You make me feel like a bum." I joked as I carried the bags downstairs.

"I've always been able to get up and get ready." SHe shrugged. "You on the other hand, are the complete oppoiste."

"Yes." I agreed. "But, we fit so perfectly together."

"We do." She agreed, kissing me again. I carried the bags out of the car and we were finally on our way to a vacation with just the two of us. We made it to the airport easily since no one was on the road at four in the morning, and we got through security without any problems.

"Do you wanna eat?" I asked as the sun began rising. She looked at me and nodded and we stood to find a place to eat. Thankfully, there was a small bagel place and we didn't have to settle for McDonald's.

"Attention Southwest passengers. Your flight it scheduled to take off on time this morning, and we will begin lining up in just a few moments." The flight attendent said over the intercom. Bella nudged my side and only smiled at me as we stood to board the plane. Once everything was situated, the captain came on and soon, we were taking off.

It was early in the morning, and Bella just ended up falling asleep on my shoulder. It was the first time in eight years we hadn't been woken up from Gabby's screams or Micah's cries and she slept more peacefully on the plane than she had in years. It took nearly six hours to land, and by the time we got off the plane, we were both tired of the air.

"Smell that." She sighed as we stepped off the plane and into the hot, sticky air of Hawaii. "Smells like ocean."

"You go to the ocean all the time." I pointed out since La Push was only minutes from our house.

"Not this ocean." She said. "This ocean is warm and crystal blue, Carlisle. Can't you smell it?" She asked and I took a deep breath, and finally understood what she was talking about. It really was a wonderful smell and I was glad we'd taken Edward's advice and just took this vacation. It took forever to get our bags and into a cab, and by the time we reached our hotel, it was already one o'clock, and both of us were beat.

"I wanna call the kids." She said the minute the hotel door closed. I sighed as she dug her phone out of her purse and went into the other room and I heard her chatting away with Gabby. I walked onto the balcony and just took it all in. I loved my two youngest children, but it was beginning to take a toll on me. I was fifty-one years old and just had a two year old. By the time he graduated high school, I'd be sixty-seven.

This was what Bella and I needed. Just to be somewhere, just the two of us. Some of my hairs were greying, and the wrinkles in my face were starting to deepen with each time I heard Micah shout the word no, or hear that he hit Gabby once again. I looked in and saw Bella sitting on the couch, laughing at something. I smiled at her. She was perfect. Absolutely perfect.

She tried so hard not to get angry and yell at Micah when he was being bad, and once he was out of timeout, she always tried to talk to him about it, rather than just brushing it aside. She also always made time for our Gabriella. It was hard having tow kids who were farther apart in age, especially when one was two years old. But, Bella set aside an hour each night for Gabby after we'd put Micah to bed.

"Hey, Gabriella wants to say hi." She said, handing me her phone.

"Hi, cutie!" I said happily into the phone as Bella took in the sight for herself. "How's Alice's?"

"Amazing!" She said. "It's quiet here!"

"I'm sure it is." I laughed, knowing the thing she so desperately wanted was peace and quiet. "Have you read any of The Indian in the Cupboard?"

"No." She sighed. "Greyson got a new game for his Play Station the other day and we've been playing that."

"Well, that's nice." I said. Micah had spill juice all over ours and she'd been without video games for a while. I personally didn't have a problem with that, but Bella only allowed her to have an hour a day so she was addicted to it. "What game is it?"

"Super Mario." She said excitedly. We talked for a bit longer before she had to go since Greyson was out of the shower and they'd just unlocked a powerup. "I miss you Daddy!"

"Miss you too, sweetie."

"Bye!" She squealed before hanging up and after a quick call to Edward, all my attention was on Bella.

"You wanna go for a swim?" I asked after we'd stared at the view for long enough.

"Sure." She nodded. "Let me go change." She said, going inside. While she was in the bathroom, I changed into my bathing suit and waited for her to come out. When she did however, my mouth was hanging open. She was wearing a skimpy little, white bikini that was just a tad too small for her took a deep breath as she walked over to me, handing me a bottle of sunscreen.

"Get my back?" She asked, sitting down on the bed. I only nodded as I took the bottle from her and squeezed some out onto my hand. "Be sure to get under the strings, I don't wanna burn."

"Sure." I practically squeaked. I was acting like some horny virgin, when she was my wife and had been for nine years. I untied the strings to her suit, and let it drop. As I was about to tie them back in place, she turned to me, and untied the top of her suit, letting it fall down onto the bed.

"Carlisle?" She asked, taking the bottle from my hands. "I don't wanna go swimming."

"Thank god!" I growled, slamming my lips into hers. She immediately wrapped her hands around my neck as I turned her and pushed her back onto the bed. I quickly removed the bottoms of her suit and began kissing every inch of her body.

"Carlisle." She moaned as I sucked on her nipples while running my hands along her inner thighs. "Fuck." She groaned as I began grinding against her. Her core was sopping wet, and by the time we'd removed my trunks, it was easy to thrust into her. She screamed in pleasure as I pounded into her, bringing her to an orgasm within minutes of being inside her. Unfortunately, I finished too soon as well and I fell limp on top of her.

"Oh, god!" I groaned as I pulled a sheet overtop of us. "How long has it been since we've done that?"

"Hmmm...I'd say...the night we conceived...Gabby." She laughed. "But, seriously...too long."

"Mhhmm." I agreed. "Hey, Bella?"

"Yeah?"

"You did bring another bathing suit...right?" I asked. She looked sexy as hell in what she had on, but there was no way in hell she was wearing that where all the young lifeguards could see her.

"Of course." She laughed. "That was just for you."

"How lucky am I?" I asked as I kissed her cheek and brought her closer to me. I had everything I could ever want, and then some.


	2. My Heaven

**Chapter Two: My Heaven**

* * *

**Bella's POV**

My eyes slowly opened, and I smiled when I realized the room I was asleep in, wasn't our bedroom. It was a hotel in room in Hawaii. I carefully picked Carlisle's arm up and placed it on the bed beside me, and stood to go outside. I looked back at him one last time before opening the sliding door and stepping onto the balcony.

Carlisle had chosen the perfect hotel. It was right on the beach, but it was in a more secluded area so not many people were crowding the beach. The water was blue and the sand was white, just like Tanya had said. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, taking in the summer air. Although it was only nine-thirty, I could already today was going to be a scorcher and couldn't wait to put on my swim suit and jump in the water.

"Morning, beautiful." I heard the familiar voice say behind me. I smiled as he hands crept around my waist and held on tightly.

"Morning." I sighed in contentment. "I thought you were still sleeping?"

"I was, but the sunlight woke me up." He told me. "Plus, I reached over for you and you weren't there."

"Oh." I whispered, leaning back into his chest. "I was thinking breakfast and then down to the pool slash ocean."

"Sounds perfect." He agreed. We stood there, looking out for a bit longer before going inside and getting dressed. Breakfast was quick, and we were back in our room, changing within an hour. "Much better." He laughed as I walked out of the bathroom in a less revealing bathing suit.

"I kinda like the other one better." I joked, but the scowl on his face showed me he didn't find that amusing."Just kidding."

"Yeah, that suits for me." He laughed, pulling me towards him. "This...this is perfect."

"It really it." I agreed before giving him a kiss and then removed myself from his grasp so I could get our bag together. We were able to find a pair of lawn chairs and a table right in view of the ocean, and laid down together. We sat there for a while, just holding hands and taking everything in, but soon, we both wanted to go down the water.

"Race ya!" He yelled as our feet touched the sand.

"Not fair!" I called after him as he raced down the beach. Since he'd gotten a head start, he'd made it to the water first, but he was there waiting for me. Once I'd reached him, he grabbed my sides and spun me around, something I only saw in cheesy romance movies. But, in Carlisle's arms, I felt loved and wanted.

"I win." He whispered, pecking my lips.

"Oh, this wasn't the last time, Carlisle Cullen."

"Oh yeah? What are you going to do about it, Bella Cullen?"

"This!" I yelled, breaking free of his grasp and running out, knee deep into the ocean. "Catch me if you think you can, gramps!" He ran out, but must have tripped over his own feet and tripped, falling into the ocean water. He came up and made a big, dramatic gesture of spitting the water out of his mouth, and began walking towards me again.

"This is the life." He laughed as we stood there, wrapped in each other's arms after the sting in his eyes went away. "I love those kids...but the silence is so peaceful."

"I know." I sighed. "I'm sorry."

"What could you possibly be sorry for?"

"Making you go through all this again." I said, letting go of him. The truth was, I really was sorry. He'd already raised two kids, already gone through the terrible two's, and PTA meetings. But, now, since he fell in love with me, someone twenty years younger, he was forced to do it all over again. "I know you were kinda happy about getting Alice and Edward."

"I was." He agreed. "But, I love Gabby and Micah. Sure, I never thought I'd be dealing with two year old temper tantrums again, but I'm so happy with them. I told you Bella, I was going to do whatever was going to make you happy."

"But, are _you_ happy?" I asked. "And be honest with me, Carlisle."

"Honesty?"

"One hundred percent."

"I couldn't be happier." He smiled. "Sure, I was excited for peace and quiet and time just to myself, but, Bella, I was...I was meant to be a dad I feel. I've never really been ready for any of my kids, but it was weird for that time when they were both at school. It was peaceful...but boring."

"Promise?"

"Gabby is my daughter. Micah is my son." He told me. "I'm going to love them no matter what stage of my life I thought I was in."

"Okay." I whispered.

"Now, enough with the heavy talks." He said, grabbing me. "This vacation is about us. As husband as wife. Not mom and dad. Let's enjoy that."

"Deal." I smiled, stepping onto my tiptoes and kissing him on his lips. Being with him here, in this paradise, literally felt like a dream, or a cheesy movie. There was no food flying, no hitting, so screaming. It was just the two of us and we could just act like a couple, rather than parents. I loved my children, they were my world, but it was good to just be with my husband. Edward had been right, we hadn't been alone since our honeymoon...eight years ago.

We spent the rest of the day, bouncing from the pool deck to the sandy beach. I helped Carlisle build a sandcastle since he claimed it'd been a tradition of his since he was Gabby's age and I was happy to help. By the time we called it a day and packed up our things, my face was beginning to burn, and Carlisle's skin was significantly darker.

"We need to be more careful with the sunscreen." He observed as he touched his hand to my cheek. "I don't want you to get burt and be miserable."

"That would suck." I laughed as the elevator dinged and the doors opened. Once we got up to the room, Carlisle jumped in the shower so I could have a chance to call the kids. I dialed Alice's number first, knowing I would have any problems getting Gabby talk, and I knew there wouldn't be a list of all the things that had gone wrong today.

"Hello?" Jasper's voice said over the phone.

"Hey, Jazz." I said eagerly. "How's it going over there?"

"Good." He answered immediately. "You're daughter is a little angel. How's Hawaii?"

"Amazing!" I sighed. "You and Alice should take a trip down here sometime...she'd love it."

"Yeah, we were trying to plan a vacation for Christmas break." He told me. "We're tired of having our families bicker about where we're going to be for Christmas."

"Sounds good." I nodded. "Can I talk to Gabriella?"

"Sure." He answered and I heard him calling Gabby's name.

"Hi, mom!" She said excitedly as Jasper passed her the phone.

"Hey gorgeous. How's Alice's house?"

"Quiet." She answered, just as she had yesterday when I asked. "No babies are crying...no hands are hitting me. Mommy, I got threw forty pages of my book today."

"Gabby, that's great." I told her. "Did you write your chapter summaries?"

"Yep. All three of them." She answered proudly. "And then I'm halfway through chapter four."

"Good." I said. The third grade class always had a contest for over the summer. Who could read the most books during the summer and they had to write little summaries for each chapter so the teacher knew they were telling the truth. "What book do you think you'll start next?"

"I'm not sure. Alice suggested Pippi Longstocking."

"That's a great book." I told her. "So, what else did you today except read?"

"Well, the twins had soccer practice and Jasper took Greyson and I to see Hotel Transylvania."

"Was it good?"

"I've seen better, but it was good." She said, making me laugh. She was eight, but she was the biggest critic when it came to movies. "And then we all met for lunch at that diner you and daddy are always ordering from."

"Did you try their hamburgers?"

"No. I had what I always have." She said. She was a pretty good eater for an eight year old, but she was still pretty picky and Carlisle and I were always trying to get her to eat more. "Their chicken fingers are too good."

"They are good. Have you talked to your brother?"

"Well, Edward was here for a little bit last night. He had to drop off something for Jasper."

"No, I mean Micah."

"No." She said flatly. "This is my vacation, mom."

"Right. It is." I laughed. She loved her brother, but she needed a vacation as much as we did. We talked for a little bit longer and when Carlisle finished in the bathroom, they talked. As Carlisle got dressed, I called Edward's, but there was no answer.

"They're probably at the field or something." Carlisle suggested as he dropped his towel and grabbed his boxers. I couldn't help but stare at him. He may have been fifty-one, but his body didn't show it. His abs were still firmly in tact, and his biceps hadn't shrunk since we'd began dating. I found myself licking my lips as he pulled his boxers up, and his eyes caught mine.

"What?"

"Oh, just admiring the view." I laughed, walking closer to him. "I don't get to see it enough."

"You can see it whenever you want." He whispered in my ear as he reached around me and untied my swimsuit.

"I...I need to shower." I managed to say as his lips left a hot trail of kissed on my neck. "We won't make our reservations."

"We can order room service." He told me as my suit top fell to the ground. I wrapped my arms around his neck, standing on my tiptoes as he bent down to kiss my breasts.

"Shit." I sighed as he bit one of my nipples, sending a feeling of hurt-so-good through my body. "Carlisle." I moaned as his hands slid down my back, down to my ass. He picked me up and carried me over to the king sized bed we shared together, and gently laid me down, crawling on top of me.

Just as he was pushing my bottoms down, my cell phone rang. We both groaned in annoyance and he rolled off of me, and grabbed my phone for me.

"Hello?" He answered, trying to come down from the excitement. I stood and moved to grab Carlisle's t-shirt he'd been wearing all day and pulled it over my head. "Hi, son. Yeah, she's right here."

"Hey, Edward."

"Hi, Bells. You call?"

"Yeah, just wanted to call and say hi. See how things were going."

"Things have been fine." He told me, and I cocked an eyebrow without realizing. "I mean, he's had a couple of temper tantrums, but Hannah has too."

"How bad were they?" I asked as Carlisle finally sat up next to me. "He didn't hit anyone, did he?"

"No." He told me. "But, he did throw his bagel on the floor this morning after he saw Hannah do the same thing. And, he broke down in tears a little bit ago when we told him it was time to go home, but again, so did Hannah. They're two, Bells."

"I know, but it doesn't give him the right to be so...violent." I sighed.

"Well, I guess he's on his best behavior because he hasn't hit anyone...yet." He laughed. "But, we were just out at the field with the girls and Micah, and he was getting...winded really easily."

"Winded?" I asked.

"Yeah, we were kicking a soccer ball around and he kept running after it and he was pretty out of breath after only fifteen minutes."

"Well, that's new." I mused. The only time he grew breathless was when he was stuffed up and literally couldn't breathe. "Is he okay now?"

"Yeah, we got him home and just made him sit at the table and drink his water." He answered. "He's upstairs with Hannah and Tanya getting cleaned up for dinner."

"Okay, well if it continues let us know." I told him. "Can I say hi?"

"Sure. Hold on." He said, and I could hear him walking up the steps.

"Mama?" I heard him ask after Edward had put him on speaker. "Daddy?"

"Hey, bud!" Carlisle greeted excitedly. "How's your big brother's house?"

"Good!" He squealed. "Hannie and me played soccer ALLLLLLLLLL today!"

"That's what Edward said!" I said. "I heard you got a little out of breath?"

"I runned too fast." He told us. "But, I'm okay now. Tanya says we get to have ice cream after dinner!"

"Ice creme?" Carlisle laughed. "Save some for me, okay?"

"No way, Jose!" He laughed. "You gots to get your own ice creme!"

"Alright, bud." I laughed. "We'll be sure to do that. We miss you!"

"I miss you too!" He whispered and I heard Hannah screaming his name in the back round. "I gots to go!"

Edward and I talked for a little bit longer, but when we heard a lound bang and Hannah's cries following, we knew it was time to hang up. I looked over at Carlisle who I knew was thinking what could be wrong with Micah.

"What are you thinking?" I asked as he grabbed a shirt from the closet.

"Asthma." He said simply. "Exercised-induced."

"Is that dangerous?" I asked, immediately worried about my little boy. "Is he going to be okay?"

"Bella, it's only a guess." He assured me. "I haven't seen him breathless or wheezy after we play together. It may just be a little chest cold."

"What if is asthma?"

"Then we treat it." He answered. "He'll need an inhaler and he'll need to be careful when he's playing...maybe he won't be on the soccer team, but he'll be okay. We told Edward to look after him, and if something happens, he'll let us know."

"Okay." I answered, wearily.

"We'll take him to the doctor as soon as we get home." He told me, bringing me into a tight hug. "Micah's fine, Bella."

After talking about it for a little longer, I took a quick shower and got dressed to go to dinner. Carlisle and I hadn't even been on a date to dinner alone since Micah was born, and it was nice to just sit and talk. Only pay attention to each other, and not have to look out for flying noodles or spilled apple juice.

"Would you like to dance, Mrs. Cullen?" He asked as soft music began playing after our dinner plates had been cleared.

"Maybe you've forgotten, Mr. Cullen, that I'm a terrible dance." I laughed. "You're supposed to be having fun."

"I will have fun." He told me standing up and extending his hand towards me. "If my wife accepts my offer." He smiled and I just rolled my eyes as I stood up and let him lead me to the small wooden dance floor the place had set up. He spun me around and pulled me close to him.

It was so wonderful being with him. Since I was such a bad dancer, the last time we'd really danced was our wedding day. But, this was different. This was more personal than our wedding. This time, it was about us and we didn't have to worry about any photographers, or him stepping on my dress. We just held each other closely, and swayed gently to the music.

"See, that wasn't bad." He said as he pushed my seat in. "Was it?"

"I guess not." I shrugged, smiling at him. "But, I guess my partner was pretty good, so that made it more enjoyable."

"Aww, that's baby." He laughed, taking my hand as our waiter came up to us.

"Can I get you any desert?" He asked, taking his note pad out.

"We would like to split the Chocolate Volcano cake, please." I told him and he walked away, leaving Carlisle and I. After the cake was placed in front of us, we both looked at each other and just laughed. The cake was bigger than Micah was when he was born. We dug in and still only ate half of it.

"I'm never eating again." I laughed as I got into the rental car. "Thank you, baby."

"Anything for you." He smiled as he got into the car. He leaned across the gears and gave me a deep, passionate kiss. "When we get back, you wanna go for a walk on the beach?"

"That sounds perfect." I smiled as he backed out of the parking space and began driving towards out hotel. Once we got there, we just headed down to the deserted beach. There were a few straggling walkers, couples who desired alone time as well, but other than that, we had the beach to ourselves.

"Look." I sighed as I looked up at the sky. "It's so clear."

"Beautiful." He sighed, pulling me close to his side. "I love you, Bella. Do I say that enough?"

"Of course." I sighed as I began stroking his back. "And, even if you don't say it, I know you do."

"Okay." He sighed as we began walking down the beach again. After a half hour, we turned around and headed back to the hotel. I sent a quick text to Alice and Edward before the two of us changed and got into bed. This might have been considered our 'second honeymoon' but, I felt we were closer to each other without sex. It was nice to just be...alone together.

"Have I ever told you how lucky I am?" I asked as I traced the outlines of his abs.

"Maybe once or twice." He chuckled.

"Well, I am." I whispered. "So lucky."


	3. Make a Pact

**Chapter Three: Make a Pact**

* * *

**Carlisle's POV**

Bella and I enjoyed the rest of the week we had together as much as we could. It was amazing, waking up at any time of the day, sitting in silence with her, just listening to the ocean, and no tantrums that we had to deal with. But, even though alone time with her was amazing, I missed out kids and was ready to go home.

"Bye bed." She laughed as she stood up when it was time to leave. "Seriously, we have to figure out what brand of bed this is."

"It was a comfy bed." I agreed.

"No, honey, the bed we have at home is comfy." She said. "This is...this is sleeping on clouds."

"I'll be sure to ask them when we check out." I laughed as I grabbed out suitcases from the small sitting room.

"That's all I ask." She nodded. We looked around the suite one last time before we walked out. Hearing the door click locked made it seem all that more real. Our peaceful vacation was over and it was back to reality. Thankfully, check-out didn't take long on a Wednesday afternoon and I got to the airport within plenty of time.

"I'm sad to be leaving...but I miss the kids." She said as we sat at a table, eating lunch. "Micah's a handful, but I miss him."

"Me too." I smiled, taking a bite of fries. Bella and I finished our lunch and hung around the airport for a little longer, waiting for our flight to be called. Since it was cheaper, we had a layover in San Diego. Thankfully, it wasn't a long one and Bella and I were at baggage right after dinner time.

"Let's go get our car!" She said excitedly after I'd gotten the last bag. I grabbed her hand and began the walk to the car in the dreadful airport parking lot. We drove to Edward's first since it was closet to the airport, and when he opened the door, I grew scarred.

"Hi." He said, grabbing Bella's hand and pulling her in.

"Edward? What's going on?" I asked as he pulled us into the living room. My heart dropped when I saw what had gotten Edward so flustered. Micah was sitting on Tanya's lap, breathing into a paper bag. However, the bag didn't seem to be working, and he was beginning to grow pale.

"Micah." Bella sighed, walking over to him. "What happened?"

"I don't know." Edward answered as I picked him up, making sure he continued to breathe into the bag. "He was chasing Hannah around the house and then, he got a little breathless and then...he couldn't breath at all."

"Come on, we're going to the hospital." Bella said as she opened the car door for me. "Thank you guys for everything this week."

"No problem." Tanya said. "Call us!" She yelled as I started the car and backed out of the driveway. It wasn't a long road to the hospital, but I could see through the rearview mirror Micah wasn't doing to great, and would pass out soon if we didn't do anything.

"Hey, Dr. Cullen." Emily greeted as we walked through the ER doors. "What's going on?"

"My son, he can't breath." I told her, holding him up to show her. "Get Marcus."

"Yes, Dr. Cullen." She said, picking up the phone to page him. I brought Micah into the nearest room I saw empty and laid him down on the bed. He tried fighting me, and continued to reach for Bella, but I was eventually able to get the breathing mask over his little face, and he wouldn't touch it.

"There you go, Micah." I whispered, stroking his small head. "Just breathe."

"Hi," I heard Marcus whisper as he walked into the room. "What's going on, Micah?"

"He was at my son's house this week while Bella and I were on a vacation and he told us that they were up at a field playing soccer, and he got winded easily. And then today, he was chasing my granddaughter around the house, and he couldn't breathe after a while."

"Has this ever happened before?" He asked, as I stood up from the bed and went to stand next to Bella.

"No, Marcus. He's always fine when he runs around." Bella choked out. I squeezed her hands, telling her she needed to keep it together for Micah. "Today, they gave him a paper bag to breathe into, but it didn't work."

"Well, we're going to run a few tests." He said, setting his clipboard down. "It shouldn't take long."

"Can't we stay with him?" Bella asked.

"It'd be best if you didn't." Marcus whispered. I nodded at Bella and she reluctantly agreed to leave the room.

"We should call Alice." She whispered as we sat down in the waiting room. "Tell her what's going on."

"Good idea. I'll text Edward."

"I can't get a signal." She sighed, standing up. "I'll be outside." I watched as she walked through the doors and buried my face in my hands. I had never been so scared for my child's life, than I was with Micah. It was the worst feeling I'd ever endured. Worse then when Esme admitted to cheating. Worse than watching Bella walk away after our first break up. Worse than watching Edward propose to Bella.

"They're going to keep Gabby for us." She sighed after she'd come back inside. "He's going to be okay, right?"

"Marcus is a great doctor." I said, forcing a smile. "He's going to be fine."

"What if..what if it's not just asthma?" She asked, and I saw the fear in her eyes. There was a possibility that it was more, but there was a chance it was less. We wouldn't know until Marcus was done with his tests. "What if...what if it's something...much worse?"

"_If_ it's something worse than asthma...we take this one day at a time." I sighed, bringing her close to me. It seemed like hours had gone by until Marcus came through the swinging doors. "So?"

"It's just as you probably expected." He told us. "It's Child-Onset Asthma."

"What does that mean?" Bella asked, and I could see the panic in her eyes. Marcus began to explain everything about the disease my son had just been diagnosed with having. I sighed in relief. Asthma was something we could easily deal with, and our son would be okay.

"Can we see him?" I asked after he finished explaining everything. Marcus nodded and led us back to a room where Micah was sitting on the bed, talking to the nurse that was sitting with him. "Hi, bud. How're you feeling?"

"Good!" He squealed. "Jenny gave me this dude!" He said, showing me the Batman action figure Jenny had just given to him.

"Very cool." I smiled. "Thanks, Jen."

"No problem." She said standing up and walking out of the room.

"You ready to go home, Micah?" Bella asked as she lifted him from the bed. "We're going to get Gabby and go to the diner."

"Gabby!" He yelled in happiness. I laughed as Bella handed him off to me to deal with paperwork we'd ignored when we arrived. It didn't take long to drive to Alice's and Gabby came running towards us, her arms flailing.

"Mom!" She yelled. "Daddy!" She screeched, jumping into my arms since Micah was falling asleep in Bella's. "I missed you guys so much!"

"We missed you too, Gabriella." I said, kissing her cheek. "Where's your sister and brother?"

"In the living room! Playing on the Wii." She told us as I put her down and she grabbed my hand, pulling me towards the living room. "Look!"

"Hi, dad!" Alice greeted as she played tennis with Ella.

"Hi, sweetie." I called, rolling my eyes as Greyson came up to me, hugging me tightly. "Hey, bud."

"Hi, Grandpa. Hi Bella!"

"Hey. How's you're mom doing on tennis?"

"I'm crushing her!" Ella said as she hit the ball on the screen.

"In my defense, I never played tennis." Alice huffed after she'd lost the game to her eleven year old daughter. "Ella, however, started playing this spring."

"Yeah, but this isn't real tennis, mom." Ella snickered as she came to sit on my lap. "But, you did pretty good at bowling."

"Exactly!" Alice laughed as Jasper came downstairs. "Look who's finally back."

"Hey, guys!" He greeted, as Micah rushed over to him, demanding to be picked up. "How're you feeling, Micah?"

"Good." He laughed as Jasper threw him in the air, and caught him.

"So, how is he?" Jasper asked after the kids had gone downstairs to their play room.

"He has asthma." Bella sighed. "But, he's okay. I guess, it could be worse."

"My brother had asthma as a kid." Jasper told us. "He grew up just fine." We stayed with Alice for a little longer before deciding it was time to go home. Thankfully, neither of the kids fought us on going home, and Peter's had the food ready to be picked up when we arrived.

I pulled into the garage and sighed with relief. It'd been a long day, and I was happy to just be at home. We ate quickly and let the kids go to bed without their baths so we could just have some quiet time to ourselves. We slumped down on to the couch, and put the TV on and I barely paid any attention to it.

"He...he is going to be okay, right?" Bella asked as we climbed into bed together. "Will he be able to play sports? I mean, he's only two but I can still tell he'll wanna play sports."

"Honestly, sweetie, I don't know." I sighed as she rested her head on my chest. "But, if he can't, we'll find something else for him to do."

"Like what?" She asked. "Math club?"

"Maybe." I laughed. "No, he could do musicals or be in the video club. Don't worry, this isn't going to limit him to the point where he needs to stay in a bubble."

"I just want him to be able to do what he wants to do. I don't want to turn him away from anything."

"Honey, we may have to." I shrugged. "But, we will cross that bridge when we come to it. Right now, let's focus on getting him to calm down and not run around as much."

"Deal." She whispered with a yawn. It didn't take either of us much time to fall asleep, and it was right on schedule the next morning with Micah's screams. I sighed as I got out of bed, and walked into his nursery. I opened the door and he was sitting in his crib, sobbing loudly.

"Hey, little man." I whispered, leaning in and picking him up. I raised him so I could smell his bottom and could tell why he was crying so loudly. "Let's get you changed."

By the time I got Micah bathed and dressed for the day, both Gabby and Bella were downstairs getting breakfast ready. I set Micah in his high chair, and moved to kiss Bella good morning. Thankfully, there were no flying hands and no one got hit at breakfast this morning, and it didn't end in tears for anyone.

"What do you wanna do today, pumpkin?" I asked Gabby as Bella cleared the table. It was Thursday, and I requested to have Thursday's and Sunday's off once Gabby was born and declared Thursday morning, daddy/Gabby day.

"Can we go to the pool?" She asked gleefully. I looked over at Bella who nodded happily.

"Sure thing." I laughed. "Why don't you go get your suit on and we can go in a little bit."

"Okay!" She said, jumping off her chair and racing into her room.

"You wanna spend more time in the sun?" Bella asked.

"She wants to go to the pool." I shrugged. "What am I to do?"

"Say no?" She almost questioned. "It's okay to say that."

"I know that. But, we get one day a week and she wants to go to the pool with her dad."

"You really are a daughter's, daddy, aren't you?" She asked, kissing the top of my hair. "It's a good thing we only have one."

"Hey, I love my sons."

"I know." She said. "But, those girls of yours."

"Ready!" Gabby squealed as she came back into the kitchen with nothing but her bathing suit on. "Let's go!"

"Whoa!" Bella laughed, taking Gabby's hand. "You need your cover up, first of all. Secondly, daddy has to get dressed and you need sunscreen."

"Fine." She huffed. "But, hurry up!"

"Yes ma'am." I laughed, standing up and walking to our bedroom. I dug my swim trunks out of my suitcase and pulled them on and sprayed myself with sunscreen. By the time I grabbed some towels and went downstairs, Gabby was waiting by the front door with a cooler in her hands. "Ready to go?"

"Yeah!" She screeched, grabbing my hand and trying to pull me out the door. "Come on, Daddy!"

"Hold on, kiddo." I laughed as she let up her grip. "Let me go get my keys and say goodbye to mommy."

"Fine." She huffed as I walked into the living room. Bella handed me my car keys and gave me a quick kiss and by Gabby's wines, I could tell she was ready to go. The drive to the community pool didn't take long and we were pleasantly surprised to run into Edward and Alexa.

"Pap!" Alexa cried, running into my arms as Gabby gave Edward a hug. "I'm gonna go swimming!"

"You are?" I asked as we paid to get into the pool. "Can I watch?"

"Of course!" She laughed as we found a space of grass to put our things down. I helped Edward put on Alexa's floaty's and brought both of them to the edge of the shallow end. "Daddy! Watch!"

"I'm watching, baby!" He called as she jumped into the water, splashing both of us. "So, how was vacation?" He asked when both Gabby and Alexa were busy swimming around. Gabby had gotten pretty good at swimming by herself, but Bella insisted that we have her take swim lessons next summer. But, for now, she was okay with swimming in the shallow end, and helping Alexa swim around too.

"Amazing." I sighed. "You were right...we needed that."

"I told you so." He laughed. "I mean, we had the kids but it was still more peaceful than being at home."

"Oh, yes." I laughed. "I didn't realize how much Bella and I needed to ourselves until this week." I told him. Edward had grown up a lot since the almost wedding he had with Bella. I was afraid, that even though he'd forgiven us both, we wouldn't have a relationship with him or his family. But, Edward was a better man than I ever thought possible and accepted and loved Bella and I with everything he had.

"They say alone time is key." He laughed as Alexa got out of the pool. "Where you going, sweetie?"

"To get Ariel!" She laughed, walking over to the grass where our things were.

"What are you and Tanya planning for your anniversary?" I asked.

"Well, I was thinking..." He began to say before we heard an earth shattering scream. We both turned around to see Alexa on the concrete ground, her screams filling the air. "Alexa!" Edward squealed, standing up and running towards her. I looked over at Gabby who was doing fine and stood up and followed.

"Honey, let me see." Edward pleaded as he reached her. He rolled her over and picked her up and I saw the blood gushing from her little knee. "Oh, wow."

"Here, I'll take her." I sighed, reaching out for her. "You go get some alcohol, neosporin, and some gauze."

"Okay. I'll be right back, Lex." He sighed as he stood to go get the supplies we needed.

"Is she okay?" Gabby asked as she came over to us. "What happened?"

"Alexa just tripped." I explained. "I'll be right in, Gabby. You can go back in."

"Okay." She nodded. "It'll be okay, Alexa." She tried to sooth, but Alexa was crying to hard I doubt she heard Gabby. Edward returned not long after with a lifeguard and the things we needed to take care of Alexa.

"What happened?" The guard asked, kneeling beside Alexa.

"She tripped." I told her, as Edward picked Alexa up.

"Well, we're going to clean this up, okay?"

"NO!" Alexa yelled. "Pappy! I want Pappy!"

"I can do it." I sighed as I knelt beside Alexa, next to the lifeguard.

"Sir,"

"I'm a doctor and her grandfather." I sighed, taking the alcohol from the guard. "I can do this."

"Okay." She sighed, as I placed the cotton ball on Alexa's knee, causing her screams to louden. Just as I was spreading the neosporin on her knee, a lifeguards whistle made me jump. The guard that had been sitting with us stood and ran over to assist the other guard who'd just jumped into the deep end where the diving board was.

"Dad!" Edward yelled as I was putting the gauze onto Alexa's knee.

"What, Edward?" I asked calmly as I rocked Alexa so she'd calm down.

"Gabby!"

"What about, Gabby?" I asked, looking up to where Edward was pointing. It was my Gabby who was being pulled out of the water by the lifeguard. "Gabby!" I yelled as I handed Alexa to Edward and running over towards the deep end of the pool.

"Gabriella!" I yelled as I neared her, and nearly threw up at the sight of her. She was turning blue and she wasn't moving. "That's my daughter!"

"Sir, you need to let us do our jobs!" A guard told me, holding me back.

"I'm a doctor!" I yelled at him. "Let me through!" I shouted as I pushed past him and ran to kneel beside my daughter. "Gabby?"

The next few minutes were a blur. The lifeguard performed CPR and got her breathing again, but they'd called an ambulance and the EMT's arrived and put her onto a gurney and into the back of the ambulance. I rode with her, holding her hand, praying nothing was wrong. They wouldn't let me go inside with her, so I sat with Emily at the nurses station, pacing back and forth.

"Do you want me to call Bella?" She asked.

"No." I sighed as Marcus came out of the swinging doors. "Marcus?"

"She's okay." He told me. "She got a little bit of water in her lungs, but we were able to remove it and she's doing just fine."

"Thank god." I sighed as a tear ran down my cheek. "Can I see her?"

"Of course. Come on, I'll show you." He said as we walked through the doors and down the hallway. This, apparently, wasn't mine or Bella's week when it came to dealing with our kids.


End file.
